Nearly 20,000 people have been forced to evacuate Berlin after two unexploded WWII bombs were discovered in the German capital.
Government buildings and embassies were shut on Thursday night, as 7,500 residents were ordered to leave the Fischerinsel island neighbourhood on the Spree river due to being in "mortal danger".
Berlin police confirmed that an object discovered in the river earlier in the day was a bomb, as they went door-to-door telling people to leave.
On Wednesday, another WWII bomb was discovered weighing about 100kg in Berlin, in the Spandau district in the city's west.
It is due to be defused today, requiring over 12,000 people to be evacuated.
A 500-metre exclusion zone has been enforced around the Spree bomb, which includes Berlin's city hall and several Senate buildings.
Police have shared a map on X of the exclusion zone, urging people to avoid the area.
Specialist teams will try to defuse the bomb before residents are allowed to return.
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An evacuation order has been put in place by the Berlin Police
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The evacuated area is very popular with tourists and is the site of multiple cities' biggest museums and attractions.
The district set up a shelter for displaced residents at its town hall, Berlin's fire department said in a statement.
Another location has also been set up at a nearby school.
German outlet Tagesspiegel reported long queues around buildings, and an employee at the city hall has reassured anxious locals that they "will be home for breakfast".
The Berlin Fire Department consulting about dealing with the bomb
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One father said: "We just want to sleep, it's unbearable."
After evacuation procedures were completed, the bomb was inspected, and a forensics team will "decide whether and when it will be defused".
A police spokesman told broadcaster RBB that the bomb will likely be defused quickly on site.
They said: "The situation surrounding the bomb's discovery makes it incredibly difficult."
Evacuation teams deal with the unexploded bomb
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The discovery of WWII bombs is fairly common in Germany, with people having to be evacuated in their hundreds or thousands to defuse bombs.
Bombs can surface during construction work on roads and bridges.
Around 1,600 unexploded bombs were defused in 2024 in the province of North Rhine-Westphalia alone, Deutsche Welle reported.
Earlier this year, the city of Cologne evacuated more than 20,000 residents from its city centre after three 1940s-era bombs were discovered.